Apparatus for obtaining zinc.



No. 830,283. PATENTED SEPT. 4, 1906. J. ARMSTRONG.

APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING ZINC.

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT. so.v 1905.

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JOHN ARMSTRONG, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING ZlNiC.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented Sept. 4, 1906.

Application and september 20,1905. serianofz'lasoo. i

.Tn all whom, it 7111111/ concern.-

Be it known that I, JonN'ARMsTRoNG, metallurgical engineer, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing in London, E. C.,

in the Kingdom of England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Furnaces or Apparatus for Obtaining Zinc, (for which application has been made in Great Britain, No. 20,543, dated September 23, of which the following is va specifica-` 1904,) tion.

This invention is forthe purpose of eX- tracting metallic zine. from ores or combinations containingit. Roasted zinc-blende may be treated by this method or calamine or other ore of zinc or of zinc in combination with lead or other metals. In any case the ore to be treated should be in the same state as is essential for its proper treatment by the ordinary retort process-that is, it should be oxidized and in powder form-so that the carbon `mixed with it in the charge shall reduce it to the metallic state. This method differs from the old retort process in the following points, vizi First. By this new method larger quantit-i es can be treated at once, and denser metallic vapors can therefore be condensed with less loss in metallic oxid or poussiere. This latter consideration determines the percentage of zine that can be with profit treated by the retort process-that is to say, unless an ore or mixture contains a-certain quantity of zinc it cannot profitably be treated in retorts, one of the reasons being that the metallic vapors being so dilute and so poor do not condense into solid metal, but are condensed in the form ol' poussiere or zinc dust and oxid. By the present invention, on the other hand, an)r kind of poor ore can be treated.

Second. By the retort process the distillation is carried on through many hours. The metallic vapors thereby continue to become less dense in metal the longer the process is continued, sothat the total metal in the ore is never wholly recovered, but is lost in the residues which remain behind in the retorts when the process is stopped and the charge is drawn. By this invention the process is cont inuous and at a very high temperature, so that all the metallic contents are thorouglil)Y recovered in the metallic state.

Third. The distillation in retorts is carried on at a great cost in labor and fuel and rel'rzurtory material forming the retorts The heating and cooling periodically in charging and discharging occasions serious losses. By this new process no cooling takes place, economy in fuel and refractory Amaterial is the result, and a much higher temperature is maintained in the furnace uring the process of distillation.

Fourth. Great difficulties are experienced in heating the retorts uniformly alike. The `high tem erature necessary for the rapid eduction 0 zinc oXid cannot be used in retorts; otherwise the would soften and melt. By this processltliie highest temperature can be applied and maintained, whereby time of the distillation process and preventing the formationV of silicate of oxid of zinc, thus further economizing fuel and standing charges, and it so augments the density of the metallic vapors that the loss in metal through the formation of avoided.

Fifth. Retorts can only be made economically of certain refractory materials, chieflyv fire-clay. lTheir life is therefore regulated by their quality and is usually of short duration. They often break and precipitate their contents into the furnace, causing trouble in the Iiues and loss of metal. The highest refractory substances-such as bauxite, dolomite, or silica-cannot be used, owing partly to the intermittent process entailing too great a change oftemperature during the charging and discharging. and other highly-refractory materials can be used, and the highest temperature can be maintained without softening or melting damage occurring during the operation.

vSixth. Zinc ores containing lead cannot profitably be treated in retorts, because the lead oxid is not wholly reduced to the lnetallic state,'but that portion which comes in contact with the walls of the retort forms lead silicate by the action of the atmosphere that is introduced when the retorts are discharged. This silicate of oxid of lead soon disintegrates the walls of the retorts and destroys them.

By this new process lead up to anyquantity in the ore can be treated, because there is never any oxidizing action in the furnace, the furnace being sealed against the atmosphere, and the contents being constantly in contact with carbon or CO gas the metal is never allowed to form oxids or silicates of oXids.

kept so until it passes out of the furnace.

Seventh. By this process uniformity of Zinc oxid` can be rapidly reduced, thereby reducing thel By this new process silical Itl is reduced to the metallic state at once and oxid or poussiere is 1 IOO IIO

. degree, and by 'I sectional :elevation them by. means vother kind'of gas.

,l the temperature can be easily maintained. The cells vare surrounded b y the heating-Huss,

which are constantly kept at a high temperature by means of the 'apparatus and the ar rangement subsequently described, the material operatedupon gradually' proceeding through the cellsand approaching the highest end of the procout the use of retorts operating upon a arge mass of material automatically and continuously,

' purpose of conducting the metallurgy of zinc vit quantitiesy of material in small retorts, the es'-l tablishment of a continuous flow of metallic vapor into the condensers, the obtaining of a pllliiform temperature in the reducing zones of e both of which can be regulated to any desired 'so cheapening the modus op' .erandz -of the process that it will be possible. to treat ores of av much poorer quality than is practicable at present, alsothe treatment of ores of zinc containing lead in quantity with or JWithout other metals.

awings of my working furnace. the drawings, Figure 1 is alongitudinal of'a row of chambers or cells, here sh'ownas vertical in position .y through 'the line A B of Fig. 3. Fig. 2, lefthand side, is a section through the line E F, Figs. 1 `and 3, and, right-hand side, section through C D, Figs. 1 and v3. Fig. 3 is a sectional lan through G H, Fi s. v1 and 2. Fi s owsdetails of brickwor of ilues. r

furnace or a paratus `is -'constructed [with chambers or ce ls, here shown upright, (marked a/a. on plans and sections.) These are preferably made narrow, and high,

flues around them for the purpose of heating of gas rom oil or coaL- or They grooved and tongued bricks to insure an airtight joint.' The chambers are formed wider separating the several heating-fines are made softhat one end is built into the solid wall of the 'furnace at B B', as shown, whilethe .other end is tongued and groovedto take the whichforms the inside of' brickfRI R, Fig. the cell or chamber. This is and grooved on its'edges. L.

The cells' .or chambers are heatedby gas ast may be anykind of gas suitable for'heat# 'also tongued nace by the ipes c c, Figs.A 1 and 2. vAir 4is also Vconve e under. presslwe by. the concen'.

as jets prolecting intoprimary' air-j ets force urners at a velocity bric d, S-burners. These e, 83S. through 4the doing away with the intermit-1 tent system of charging and discharging small -chambers and .also in the condensers,

invention is best set forth by describing.

arrived at the stage. of partial exhaustion,

' Which would be the `inal stage in the retort` long, comparatively, and are uilt with heating-` vare. formed with at the 'bottom than at the top, and the bricks ingfurnaces, which -is conveyed Vto the -fur-- :and made so that it can which is entirely under control, as the air and gas are regulated in\ their flow through ilie pipes by stop-cocks for this'purpose. By the action of the primary air in forcing the gas into the burners and up the heating-lues a -partial vacuum is formed in the lower portion of the heating-flues,which causes a secondary or uesin the briokwork at P P and enter the combustion-iluesf, Where it mixes with the Asup ly of air to descend through the-hot tubes gas, causing a very 'high temperature .in the combustion-fines.

The -cells or chambers'are constructed in a row and are su ported by buekstays on the outside and beldw by beams (marked-V) to carry the floor. The cells are surmounted by a hopper T T forcharging them. Thecharge passing through the chamber falls down upon the discharging apparatus b b, which is'rotated slowl at 'a rate requisite tocontinually discharge t e exhausted residues, While' a continuous supply of'material is fed, in at the hopper's T T. The region of greatest heat is 'i toward the` lower portion of the,cell orchan1v ber and just op osite and above the gasburners. .The ce ls'or chambers being constantly filled with the charge, the latter grad# uallydescends to this region of highest teln-v peratureso that by the time the charge has process, the charge is then'acted upon by the last quota o metallic vapor." given o and pass into the condenser 12, through the gills,- g g. The condenser -L l), is filled with coke, -anthracite, 0r other carbonaceous materialor charcoal by' the' lid m.

Here the' metallic vapors descend and. are-' condensed into themetallic liquid state and percolate through the apertuesin the` bottom of the condenser, the carbon-monoxid gas passing under the baille-Wall up the tube k k and into the atmosphere or c1 other. flue or pipe for use. The flue k k is ininey -or ughest tem erature, Wherel it arts with ,its

he vapors are too formed in,..the'door s s, Whiehis hinged and .made with close-fitting ereadily (pened for cleaning purposes."V The perforate' bottom 'y is also made movable. The metal condenses into .the metallic liquid state in the as.' shownfto serve the double purpose of keeping oints -to exclude air 'chamber w w, where it is collected and is y y v tapped ofi periodically by the stoppered tube the carbon on one side` andthe powdered charge on the otherwithout mixing and of all lowing free descent to both and a clear and uninterru ted path for the metallic vapors through t lem. The'cells or 'chambers being continually fullo the powdered charge up to thehipper at the topfan electualseal `is thus provi constantly a `plus .pressure `inside vthese parts.

ed against the atmosphere entering the 4 'cells orchambers or condenser, there being The discharging apparatus consists of a cylinder divided into compartments which is supported upon trunnions which run in bearings at each end. Iowei` is applied to the end to turn this cylinder very slowly round when the powdered residues are discharged automatically.

The cells or chambers being constructed narrow comparatively, the intense heat penetrates the charge in a manner hitherto unattaiiied, whereby dense metallic vapors are constantly evolved, giving a steady and regular metallic condensation without lthe inevitable loss in poussiere and oXid by the old method.

v When a row of cells or chambers is erected together, the as may be manufactured in one or more of the .cells without a separate producer, and the gas can be either the rich hydrocarbon gas from the distillation of coal or that mixed with hydrogen and carbon monoxid if steam is applied to the bottom of the cell or the gas manufactured from oil in the cell or gas maybe obtained through a separate pipe from an extraneous supply.

The products of combustion are conducted away by the horizontal lues 'n n to any con- Venient chimney or stack or they may be simply discharged direct -into the atmosphere at the surface of the roof of the furnace.

Inspection-holes or iiues are' provided at z z for thepurpose o'f judging' the proper quantity of air and gas andvalso for inserting a rod or rake for clearing the bottom of the iiues of combustion. These are closed with proper air-tight doors. y

Inconclusion .it will be noticed that the chambers are built not merel comparatively narrow, but somewhat inc ed on the inside face, so as to facilitatethedescent of the materials operated jfupon'; Sufficient depth is arranged for betweenthe outlet for the metallic gases into the condenser and-the feeding-door at' the top to insure a erfect seal to the atmosphere, also sufficient epth is left at bottom`between the heated flue and the dischargerb to form a seal and to enable the residue to cool to a black heat or thereabout before being discharged unless the discharge takes place at once into a furnace for separating the lead. The. divisions between the gas flues and retorts are made of thin bricks or blocks with locking-joints sub- -stantially as de icted in Fig. 45' The condensers ae'pre erably loosely packed with charcoal `or coke in pieces some inches in diameter. i

This furnace Vis welladaptedldlso for the treatment of zinciferous ores containing lead and silver and other metals Awell known under,the designationcom osite ores. Hav- Ving no bottomand the air eing excluded from the chamber, the lead has no opportunity to oxidize and injure the interior, as is the case when this is performed by means of retorte.

The 'lead is reduced by the carbon-present .to the metallic state and can` be easilyrecovered from the residues, or when an air-seal-discharging device is used it canbe collected in a sump at the bottom of the chamber and tapped out from time to time. When, however, zinciferous ores are treated containing lead, an excess of carbon must be used in the mixture-first for the purpose of reduction and, second, for the purpose of keeping the Chamb ers open and preventing agvlomeration or massing in the interior of tlie residues when ores are treated rich in' lead.

The waste heat and consumed ga's are led away from the furnace and are used for raisin steam or for roasting ores or other usefulg urpose. The carbon-monoxid gas iven o from the condensers may also be colected and used as fuel for heating the chambers or be mixed with the gas used for this purpose. l

I declare that what I claim isel. In furnaces for obtaining zinc, the coinbination of narrow deep reducin -chambers open at top and bottom, forme with thin walls nearly surrounded by flues, with an airseal-feedin device at the top and an air-sealdischarge evice below, substantially as described. v 2. In a furnace or apparatus for obtaining zinc, the combination of a lon high narrow reducing-chamber, means for. aving a continuous or substantially continuous feed at the top a discharge apparatus at bottom, bothfeed and discharge constructed of suiii- -cient height to form air seals.

3. In an apparatus for obtaining zinc, the combination of a long narrow deep reducingchamber open at to and bottom, means for keeping the same fil ed at top, a discharging device at b ottom, a series of flues surrounding the same and means for injecting air andl as .one of them being under pressure into the ower art of the ues.

4. he combination of a high narrow reducing-chamber heating-dues surrounding the same, and air-flues contiguous to the heating-dues, an opening for the admission of air to the air-dues at the to and an opening for the exit of the air at the bottom into the heating-flues and air and gas injection under pressure at the bottom o the heating-dues, substantially as described.

5. In a furnace or apparatus for obtaining zinc, the combination of a high narrow reducin -chamber, heating-fines on each side, heate by` air and gas injection, and means for introducing secondary air into the flue just above the injectors. 1

In apparatus for obtaining zinc, the combination of a hi h reducing-chamber, `a condensing-chamber argely filled with pieces of carbon placed alon side the reducingchamber, a series of ba es or ducts sloping downward toboth chambers connecting the IIO same, a well at the bottom ofthe condensingchamber, and an exit-pipe for the spent vapor substantially as described.

7. In apparatus for obtaining zinc, the combination of the reducing-chamber7 and a condensing-chamber, bathing-passages between them, and a door formed in one piece with the condensing-chamber, having an exitpipe from the chamber in said door, substantially as described.

8. In an apparatus or furnace for obtaining zinc from ores containing large nantities of lead and other metals, a device or distilling off the zinc first, and a cooling-chamber formed of metal sealed below from the atmosphere, whereby the remainder of the charge is cooled sufficiently before discharge to prevent oxidation of the lead contained therein.

9. In an apparatus for obtaining zinc, a long high reducing-chamber7 means for keeping it constantly full at the top, and thus forming an air seal, and a continuation of said chamber forming a cooling-chamber, and an air seal at the bottom with a device for eX-v tracting the residues without material admission of air, substantially as described.

10. In an apparatus for obtaining zinc, a high narrow reducing-chamber with means for feeding the same at top and at the same time sealing it from the air, means for dischargin it at the bottomv with an air seal, the sai chamber being made slightly tapered so as to be wider at the' bottom than at the to and extending in depth 'and height beyon the heating-nues whereby the material easily descends and is cooler at the top and bottom than at the intermediate zone of reduction.

In witness whereof I have hereunto signed my name7 this 5th day of Se tember, 1905, in 4o Witnesses:

A. NUTTING, 'H D. JAMESON. 

